Gutter and downspout system for a tent or shelter

ABSTRACT

A gutter and downspout system that may be used with a tent, shelter, or other fabric structure. The gutter may be aligned along a rain fly edge to direct water away from the tent door or tent windows. After the rainwater is directed the proper distance to clear the tent door and/or windows, the water can fall from the rain fly to the ground or may be directed via a downspout to the ground. The gutter is formed of a flexible material that is sewn to the rain fly or to the canopy. The downspout may include, for example, a flexible ring at an upper portion connected to an elongate waterproof fabric tube. The end of the tube may be arranged and directed as wanted.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to tents and shelters, and moreparticularly to tent and shelter construction.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Camping is a popular recreational activity enjoyed by many. Some peoplecamp so that they may enjoy the outdoors, and others use camping as aninexpensive alternative to staying in a hotel.

Typically, campers sleep in a tent while camping. Tents are portableshelters made of lightweight, often waterproof, fabrics. Typically, thefabric is stretched over and sustained by a frame. Tents are used forcamping outdoors or as temporary structures, and come in a variety ofshapes and sizes. The most popular shape is the dome, or free standing,model. This model is easy to set up and does not require support fromtree limbs or other objects.

Another structure that is often used while camping is a shelter. Ingeneral, a shelter is a structure, typically a frame with poles, thatincludes a covering or canopy that provides protection from the rain,insects, and/or the sun. For camping, a shelter is typically made offabric and foldable poles so that the shelter may be folded into acompact configuration for transport and storage. The shelter may or maynot have walls, such as screen walls. The shelter may be, for example,set up over a picnic area, used adjacent to a tent as a storage area,configured to serve as protection from the rain, or used as a screenedarea to avoid insects.

The advent of new waterproof materials typically prevents a sheltercanopy as well as a rain fly for a tent from leaking. Thus, rain fliesand shelter canopies typically work well to shelter a tent or otheritems underneath the covering. However, one problem with the use of suchcoverings is that water draining off of a rain fly or a shelter canopymay drip in undesirable areas, such as at a tent door or at tentwindows. In addition, a hard rain may cause a large amount of water toflow off of a covering and may cause considerable splashing or splatter,especially for shelters, which typically have canopies that are spacedhigher from the ground than a tent rain fly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of theinvention in order to provide a basic understanding of the invention.This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is notintended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or todelineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to presentsome embodiments of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude tothe-more detailed description that is presented later.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a gutter anddownspout system is provided that may be used with a tent, shelter, orother fabric structure. As one example, the gutter may be aligned alonga rain fly edge to direct water away from the tent door or tent windows.After the rainwater is directed the proper distance to clear the tentdoor and/or windows, the water can fall from the rain fly to the ground.Alternatively, in accordance with an aspect of the invention, therainwater may be directed via a downspout to the ground. Thus, a campercan enter or exit the tent through the door without the water drippingon the camper. In addition, windows may be left partially open during arain shower without the rainwater runoff entering the tent through theopen window(s). Also, rainwater flow off a shelter may be controlledand/or directed.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the gutter is formedof a flexible material that is sewn to the rain fly or to the canopy. Inaccordance with another embodiment of the invention, the flexiblematerial is positioned inside the trim fabric for the rain fly orcanopy. In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, theflexible material is sufficiently flexible to allow compact packing ofthe rain fly or canopy when not in use. The flexible material may, forexample, be formed of closed cell polyethylene or another flexible tubeextrusion. The gutter may be aligned along edges of the rain fly orshelter canopy. Alternatively, if a shortened version of a gutter isused, then the shortened version of the gutter may be sufficient toallow rainwater runoff to miss a tent door and/or windows. In accordancewith an embodiment of the invention, the gutter material may also bepositioned at locations other than at the edge of the rain fly orshelter canopy.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a downspout may beprovided that enhances water control of rainwater runoff. The downspoutmay include, for example, a flexible ring at an upper portion connectedto an elongate waterproof fabric tube. The end of the tube may bearranged and directed as wanted. The attachment of the downspout to arain fly or shelter canopy may be permanent or removable. The downspoutdirects rainwater runoff completely away from the tent or shelter areaso that pooling or accumulation of water under or around the tent orshelter is eliminated.

Other features of the invention will become apparent from the followingdetailed description when taken in conjunction with the drawings, inwhich:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of a tent incorporating an embodimentof the invention;

FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of a second tent incorporating anembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken-along the section lines 3—3 ofFIG. 1, showing a gutter for use with the tent of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the gutter of FIG. 3, similarto FIG. 3, showing the gutter's response to water flowing on a rain flyfor the tent of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view, similar to FIG. 3, showing analternate embodiment of a gutter; and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view, similar to FIG. 3, showing anotheralternate embodiment of a gutter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, various embodiments of the presentinvention will be described. For purposes of explanation, specificconfigurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the embodiments. However, it will also be apparent toone skilled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout the specific details. Furthermore, well-known features may beomitted or simplified in order not to obscure the embodiment beingdescribed.

Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numeralsrepresent like parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 shows a tent20 incorporating an embodiment of the invention. The tent 20 shown inthe drawings is a simplified model, and poles and specific details forthe tent 20 are not shown. However, the general configuration andmanufacture of tents is known, and thus a specific configuration isomitted or simplified in order to not obscure the embodiments of theinvention being described.

The tent 20 includes a rain fly 22 covering a top portion of the tent20. The tent 20 also includes a door 24 and windows 26 and 28 on sidesof the tent 20. In the embodiment shown, the rain fly 22 extends outbeyond the door 24 and the windows 26, 28. However, embodiments of thepresent invention can be used with tents having a different structure.

The rain fly 22 shown in the drawings includes a top 30, and side edges32, 34, and 36. In the drawings, the side edge 32 is to the right, theside edge 34 is to the front, and the side edge 36 is to the left.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a gutter or guttersmay be provided on the rain fly 22 or on a rain fly for another tent. Infact, although the embodiments described are discussed with reference tothe rain fly 22 for the tent 20, embodiments of the invention may beused for any covering in which it is desired to direct rainwater runoff,including, but not limited to, canopies, shelters, and tarpaulins.

In the embodiment shown, a gutter is not included on the right side edge32 of the rain fly 22. However, a full gutter 40 extends along theentire length of the front side edge 34. A partial gutter 42 extends aportion of the length of the left side edge 36. The full gutter 40redirects water heading toward the front side edge 34 to corners 46, 48of the rain fly 22. The partial gutter 42 directs water away from thewindow 26, but because it does not extend to the corner 48 or anopposite corner 50, the partial gutter 42 only provides partialredirecting of water from the side edge 36.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-section of the full gutter 40. The example shown inFIG. 3 is but one embodiment of a gutter style that may be used inaccordance with the present invention. In general, the gutter of thepresent invention includes a structure attached to a top of the rain fly22 or other covering that is configured to form a dam to the flow ofwater beyond the structure. The structure may be, as examples, a bead, aprotrusion, or a sewn formation at the top 52 of the rain fly 22. Astructure for the gutter may also bend the fabric of the rain fly 22 soas to form such a structure. To this end, the structure for the gutter(e.g., the full gutter 40) may be attached to a bottom 54 of the rainfly 22 and protrudes up through the rain fly. However, with respect tothe full gutter 40 described with reference to FIG. 3, the structure isattached to the top 52 of the rain fly 22.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the full gutter 40 is formed as apart of an attachment to trim material 56. As is known, trim material(e.g., the trim material 56) is often added to rain flies, canopies, orother structures, so as to reinforce the outer edges of the fabriccovering. Typically, the trim material is wrapped around the edge andsewn to itself, providing a protecting barrier for the outer edge of thecovering. However, as used herein, “trim material” represents any fabricstrip that may be attached to the rain fly 22 or other covering.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the trim material 56 includes a bead58 wrapped therein. The bead 58 and the trim material 56 provide thegutter function, as is further described below.

The trim material 56 is aligned beginning at a top end 60 along the top52 of the rain fly 22. The trim material 56 then extends in a loop 62around the bead 58 and then is overlapped over the top end 60 in anoverlap section 64. The trim material 56 then wraps around under thebottom 54 of the rain fly 22 and terminates at a bottom end 66.

In the embodiment shown, the trim material 56 may be glued, sewn, orotherwise attached to the top 52 and/or bottom 54 of the rain fly 22. Inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention, the trim material 56 isattached so that the overlap section 64 is fixed to the top end 60 sothat a break 68 occurs in the trim material 56 between an attachedportion of the overlap section 64 and the loop 62. This break 68 is thepoint at which the overlap section 64 is no longer attached to the topend 60. The top end 60 of the trim material 56 is attached to the top 52of the rain fly 22 up to this same break 68.

Thus, in accordance with this embodiment of the invention, the loop 62is not attached to the rain fly 22, permitting the loop 62 to move tothe position shown in FIG. 4. This feature permits water W flowing downthe top 52 of the rain fly 22 to press between the loop 62 and the top52 of the rain fly 22 and to drive the loop 62 and the bead 58 upwardand outward, rotating about the break 68. The attachment of the top end60 to the top 52 of the rain fly 22 prevents continued rotation of theloop 62 and the bead 58 about the break 68, and preferably is stopped sothat a wall is formed by the back side of the loop 62 that is somewhatperpendicular to the top 52 of the rain fly 22. This allows water W(FIG. 4) to be trapped at the back side of the full gutter 40,preventing some spillage over the full gutter 40. The water W may thentravel down the full gutter 40 by gravity to the respective corner 46 or48.

If desired, the trim material 56 may be attached at a location otherthan at an edge of the rain fly 22. For example, in the embodiment of atent 70 shown in FIG. 2, gutters 72 and 74 are positioned at locationson a rain fly 76 that are removed from edges 78, 79 of the rain fly 76.These gutters 72, 74 may be used to control some or most of rainwaterrunoff, or may be used to preferably control direction of some water inaccordance with a configuration of the particular rain fly or othercovering.

The gutters 72, 74 may be attached in a manner similar to the gutter 40described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. However, in such anembodiment, if trim material similar to the trim material 56 is used,that trim material, for obvious reasons, will not overlap to the bottomportion of the rain fly 76, but instead would terminate, for example atthe bend 89 of the trim material 56 in FIG. 3.

Returning to a description of the bead 58, the bead 58 is preferably aflexible material to allow compact packing of the rain fly 22 when notin use. As an example, the bead 58 may be a closed cell polyethylenefoam extrusion, having a round cross section, or alternatively a crosssection of another suitable shape. The bead 58 may also be a flexiblepolyvinyl chloride extruded tube. In an example of a gutter 80 shown inFIG. 5, the bead 82 is hollow. In another example of a gutter 86 shownin FIG. 6, the bead 88 has a square cross section. Other suitable crosssections may be used.

As described above, the gutter system of the present invention providesa gutter geometry that resists the flow of water down a rain fly (e.g.,the rain fly 22) and provides a damming effect for that water. Thisdamming effect provides a resistance to stop the flow of water over thegutter, such as at a rain fly edge, and directs the water parallel tothe gutter toward the end of the gutter which may, for example, be at arain fly corner 46 or 48. Alternatively, if a partial gutter 42 is used,the water may be directed to the ends of the gutter which maycorrespond, for example, to just beyond the outer edges of the window26. Alternatively, as also described above with reference to FIG. 2, agutter such as the gutter 72 or 74 may be provided at other areas of arain fly or other covering rather than at the edge of the covering. Thisuse of the gutter system allows control of selective rainwater runoffand may be advantageous for particular geometries of coverings.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a downspout 100(e.g., FIGS. 1 and 2) may be provided at a corner or at another suitablelocation on the rain fly 22 or other covering. In accordance with anembodiment of the invention, the downspout 100 includes a flexible bead102, such as the flexible bead 58, sewn or otherwise connected at a topof the downspout 100 and formed into a ring. The flexible bead 102maintains a top end of the downspout 100 in an open position so that thedownspout 100 may receive water. The remainder of the downspout 100extending downward from the flexible bead 102 is preferably formed of aflexible, waterproof material and is configured into a tube. The end 104of the flexible tube may be directed in any desired direction.

In use, water flows down the rain fly 22 and into the downspout 100. Thewater may be directed in this manner, for example, by the full gutter40. Water directed into the downspout 100 flows into the open mouthformed by the flexible bead 102 and out of the end 104.

The flexible bead 102 provides an advantage in that it permits easy flowof water into the downspout 100. If desired, a downspout could beconfigured to not include such a flexible bead, but construction withthe flexible bead 102 permits easy capture of water directed toward thedownspout 100. In addition, the use of flexible material for theflexible bead 102 permits the downspout 100 to be folded into a compactconfiguration for storage or transport.

The downspout 100 may be attached to the rain fly 22 in a suitablemanner, such as by sewing, adhesive, or another permanent attachmentmechanism. Alternatively, the downspout 100 may be attached to the rainfly 22 so that the downspout 100 is removable. For example, thedownspout 100 may be attached by hook and loop fasteners (not shown, butknown in the art)

Although shown attached to the corners 46, 48, the downspout 100 mayalternatively be used in other areas. For example, for the rain fly 22,downspouts 100 may be attached at the ends of the partial gutter 42.These downspouts 100 may have their ends 104 suitably directed eitheralong the rain fly 22 or, if the downspout 100 is long enough, to theground.

The end 104 of the downspout 100 may be directed so that the rainwaterrunoff may be directed away from a base of the tent 20 or away from ashelter, if used with a shelter. This feature aids in keeping the tent20 dry, and may be utilized to avoid puddles in a tent or shelter area.

The present invention provides a method of controlling and directingrainwater runoff from a rain fly (e.g., the rain fly 22), a shelter, orother covering. The gutter system of the present invention directs therainwater runoff along the gutter, for example along a rain fly edge,downward to the ends of the gutter. The ends of the gutter may be atcorners of the rain fly, or at other suitable locations. The waterdirected to the corners or other location(s) may be allowed to fall tothe ground or may be directed to run into the downspout 100. If thedownspout 100 is used, the runoff water may be directed to a suitablelocation by directing the end toward the location.

Other variations are within the spirit of the present invention. Thus,while the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative constructions, a certain illustrated embodiment thereof isshown in the drawings and has been described above in detail. It shouldbe understood, however, that there is no intention to limit theinvention to the specific form or forms disclosed, but on the contrary,the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions,and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention, asdefined in the appended claims.

All references, including publications, patent applications, andpatents, cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference to the sameextent as if each reference were individually and specifically indicatedto be incorporated by reference and were set forth in its entiretyherein.

The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in thecontext of describing the invention (especially in the context of thefollowing claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and theplural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted bycontext. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing”are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, butnot limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. The term “connected” is to beconstrued as partly or wholly contained within, attached to, or joinedtogether, even if there is something intervening. Recitation of rangesof values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method ofreferring individually to each separate value falling within the range,unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value isincorporated into the specification as if it were individually recitedherein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitableorder unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearlycontradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplarylanguage (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to betterilluminate embodiments of the invention and does not pose a limitationon the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language inthe specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimedelement as essential to the practice of the invention.

Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, includingthe best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention.Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to thoseof ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. Theinventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations asappropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practicedotherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, thisinvention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subjectmatter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicablelaw. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in allpossible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unlessotherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

1. A fabric covering, comprising: a top; and a structure that extendsabove the top to direct water runoff.
 2. The fabric covering of claim 1,wherein the fabric covering comprises a rain fly for a tent.
 3. Thefabric covering of claim 1, wherein the fabric covering comprises acanopy for a shelter.
 4. The fabric covering of claim 1, wherein thestructure comprises an elongate protrusion configured to extend abovethe top.
 5. The fabric covering of claim 4, wherein the elongateprotrusion comprises a flexible bead attached to the top.
 6. The fabriccovering of claim 5, wherein the flexible bead is attached to the top bya fabric strip.
 7. The fabric covering of claim 6, wherein the fabricstrip forms a loop and the flexible bead is positioned in the loop. 8.The fabric covering of claim 7, wherein the fabric strip wraps aroundthe flexible bead to form the loop, and wherein opposite portions of thefabric strip adjacent the loop are aligned against one another and areattached to the top.
 9. The fabric covering of claim 8, wherein thefabric strip and the flexible bead are arranged so that the loop and theflexible bead are rotatable upward relative to the attachment of thefabric strip to the top.
 10. The fabric covering of claim 9, wherein,when the flexible bead is rotated upward relative to the attachment ofthe fabric strip, a back portion of the loop forms a wall that extendsupward from the top and that is supported by the flexible bead and theattachment of the fabric strip to the top.
 11. The fabric covering ofclaim 10, wherein the wall extends at approximately a right angle to thetop.
 12. The fabric covering of claim 1, further comprising a fabricdownspout arranged to receive water flowing along the gutter at a firstend and to direct the water to a second end of the downspout.
 13. Thefabric covering of claim 12, wherein the fabric downspout comprises atube of fabric.
 14. The fabric covering of claim 12, wherein the fabricdownspout comprises a ring at the first end for holding the first endopen to receive the water.
 15. The fabric covering of claim 12, whereinthe fabric downspout is removably attached to the fabric covering. 16.The fabric covering of claim 1, wherein the gutter extends along an edgeof the fabric covering.
 17. The fabric covering of claim 16, wherein thegutter extends along an entire edge of the covering.
 18. A sheltercomprising the fabric covering of claim 1 as a canopy.
 19. A tent,comprising: a rain fly comprising: a top; and a structure that extendsabove the top to direct water runoff.
 20. The tent of claim 19, whereinthe structure comprises an elongate protrusion configured to extendabove the top.
 21. The tent of claim 20, wherein the elongate protrusioncomprises a flexible bead attached to the top.
 22. The tent of claim 21,wherein the flexible bead is attached to the top by a fabric strip. 23.The tent of claim 22, wherein the fabric strip forms a loop and theflexible bead is positioned in the loop.
 24. The tent of claim 23,wherein the fabric strip wraps around the flexible bead to form theloop, and wherein opposite portions of the fabric strip adjacent theloop are aligned against one another and are attached to the top. 25.The tent of claim 24, wherein the fabric strip and the flexible bead arearranged so that the loop and the flexible bead are rotatable upwardrelative to the attachment of the fabric strip to the top.
 26. The tentof claim 25, wherein, when the flexible bead is rotated upward relativeto the attachment of the fabric strip, a back portion of the loop formsa wall that extends upward from the top and that is supported by theflexible bead and the attachment of the fabric strip to the top.
 27. Thetent of claim 26, wherein the wall extends at approximately a rightangle to the top.
 28. The tent of claim 19, further comprising a fabricdownspout arranged to receive water flowing along the gutter at a firstend and to direct the water to a second end of the downspout.
 29. Thetent of claim 28, wherein the fabric downspout comprises a tube offabric.
 30. The tent of claim 28, wherein the fabric downspout comprisesa ring at the first end for holding the first end open to receive thewater.
 31. The tent of claim 28, wherein the fabric downspout isremovably attached to the rain fly.
 32. The tent of claim 19, whereinthe gutter extends along an edge of the rain fly.
 33. The tent of claim32, wherein the gutter extends along an entire edge of the rain fly. 34.The tent of claim 32, wherein the gutter extends over a window for thetent.
 35. The tent of claim 32, wherein the gutter extends over a doorfor the tent.
 36. A fabric covering, comprising a fabric downspoutarranged to receive water flowing along the gutter at a first end and todirect the water to a second end of the downspout.
 37. The fabriccovering of claim 36, wherein the fabric downspout comprises a tube offabric.
 38. The fabric covering of claim 36, wherein the fabricdownspout comprises a ring at the first end for holding the first endopen to receive the water.
 39. The fabric covering of claim 36, whereinthe fabric downspout is removably attached to the rain fly.
 40. A tentcomprising the fabric covering of claim 36.